The present invention relates generally to educational portable electronic analog computers. Existing analog computers have soldered components and components which are usually not visible to the user. In such cases when soldered components are used the number and gains of inputs to amplifiers and integrators are fixed. Their number of outputs are fixed too. Their circuits within a module cannot be modified, updated, or repaired easily and components cannot be replaced readily. As a result, the amplifiers, multiplier/dividers, integrators, inverters, square root operators and comparators can only be treated as "black boxes". Hence, to perform the operation of a transfer function representing a filter, as an example, two or more amplifiers ordinarily are needed. Using the present invention, usually but one amplifier would be required, making for a more compact system and cutting down on costs and space. In addition, as an educational computer, it enables integration of teaching of electronic circuit design and computer programming in one neat package. Digital logic circuits may be added as needed to simulate a needed physical system or solve a desired differential equation. This is known as hybrid computation, when some operations are performed in an analog manner and others in a digital manner to enable a complete system to be simulated.
Another desirable feature is that an analog computing component may be removed in toto with the terminal strips and replaced by another computing component with its terminal strips, since there need not be any soldered connections. In addition, a pluggable computing component which itself can be modified to suit the programmer is a capability which does not exist in today's analog computers to my knowledge. Comparable analog computers weigh between fifty to one hundred pounds and are too large for a person, such as a teacher, to carry from room to room to give demonstrations and the like. The present invention would not weigh more than ten pounds and would be the size of a large book, which can be placed inside an attache or a brief case.
Should a mathematician or student wish to consider the computing modules or components to be "black boxes", identified covers are provided which enclose the circuits, eliminating their visibility, thereby not distracting a person whose only interest is programming an equation or set of equations. In such a case, suggested standard circuits would be referred to by the programmer. The covers can show the programmer's symbols, to indicate the type of circuit wired beneath.
In the present invention the patch panel, electronic circuits and manifold supplying voltages to the operational amplifiers and other components such as relays, potentiometers, transistors, logic computing components, if any, are integrated on one common panel. The panel configuration is designed to facilitate easy building and experimenting with a wide variety of circuit structures and circuits involving one or more amplifiers. The density of amplifiers per square foot of area is higher than in other computers. For example, in the present invention there are provisions for at least 12 amplifiers per square foot of panel area and the same panel includes all the electronic circuits, potentiometers, switches and voltmeters. The voltmeters may give either analog or digital indication of the voltage value, depending on the cost of the computer and the amount the user is willing to spend for the convenience of digital indication.